Figuring Out AP/Honors/Other Classes To Benefit My Future

Pre-College Issues High School Life
1

Even though it seems as if high school is lasting forever, the thought of growing up is messing with my brain. Ever since freshman year, I have been working super hard to maintain a good academic image, and as I am reaching the final year(s), classes/grades/tests are top priority. My school of choice is University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (this has been my dream school since early childhood). I do have alternatives but my thought was to set my goals high so anything lower would be accomplished. In my school district, you have to sign up for your classes for the next school year as early as December so you get priority over incoming kids. I was wondering if someone could assist me in picking the right fits for my coursework. I have read several threads from teens having the same situation or close to mine, but I felt I needed to create one myself to address my personal academic issues. My career path of choice is a business field, most likely marketing but I could switch to entrepreneurship or management depending on the university I end up attending. Based off the pre-req classes I would take my first year of college, I made a list of some AP and honors classes that could benefit me.

**Before I start, I am going to list the classes I have taken before so you can understand the concepts I am familiar with.
Math: Algebra 1 Honors, Geometry, Algebra 2 Honors
English: English Honors
Science: Biology 1 Honors, Chem 1 Honors, Anatomy and Physiology Honors
History: World History Honors, AP Human Geography (counted as an elective)

**These are the possible classes I could take/want to/have to take:
AP Economics (Micro and Macro. Others said that this AP class was a good one to take and really essential to life)
AP Statistics
AP US Gov and Politics
AP English Literature and/or AP English Language (which is preferred? is one a pre-req?)
AP Computer Science (should I take Digital Information Tech first or along with it or neither/both?)
Digital Information Technology (elective/introduction for a business major when in college)
US History (Honors, AP, etc. The course itself is required to graduate I just need to know which level I should take)
Physics (Honors, AP, etc. Also a required course, I just need to clarify a level)
Entrepreneurship 1 (elective)
Sports and Entertainment Management in Marketing (elective)
Life Management Skills (required to graduate)

I am allowed 7 classes total, and up to 4 AP classes total. I would prefer to keep a balanced course load (not take 5 math classes and only 1 elective), but I am willing to put in the extra work. US History, Physics, and Life Management Skills are required to graduate. That takes up 3/7 spaces on my schedule. Let me know what level of the history and physics I should take and what should fill up the other 4 spaces.

I KNOW THIS WAS KIND OF LENGTHY! If you went through my whole plan, I would like to thank you for your time and help. Hopefully I can get this figured out in the next few months.

Thanks everyone!

2

What year are you in? What are you taking now?

I would be a bit careful with the APs. You want to take APs in subjects where you are very strong, have the required background, want to work hard, and therefore will likely do very well. I have seen AP Euro History be very tough and have heard that AP US History is just as tough – thus I would only take them if you really like the subject and can handle a lot of reading and can remember a lot of detailed facts.

Do you have any high school grades yet, or are you just starting high school?

3

When it comes to what you’ve listed, I’ve only had experience with AP English Language, AP English Literature, AP Macroeconomics, AP Government, and college-level Dual Enrollment (not AP) US History.

AP English Language is generally taken junior year before AP English Literature, which is taken senior year. My school also has college Composition I and II, which is weighted like an AP class and gives you the 6 credits you would have gotten if you got a 4 or 5 on AP English Language, provided you pass the classes with Cs or higher. Comp I and II are generally taken by seniors who failed the AP English Language exam junior year or got 3s on it. From what I’ve heard, colleges really like to see AP English Lang, so I would take it junior year and Lit senior year. (I’m in Lit right now and it seems to be MUCH easier than what my friends are going through in Comp I and II).

From what I am reading, your school seems to limit the amount of APs you can take at once. Do you have any access to early college/dual credit programs? If so, you could take those if you would like to have many college level classes at once, but be warned that these classes can be extremely unforgiving–there are very few fluff assignments, a LOT of outside reading, and absences can kill you if you don’t have a very strong excuse.

US History junior year can be a killer if you take it at the college level. Several of my friends were in AP and there was a lot of homework early on. I took DE/College US History I and II and the tests were extremely difficult (6 or 7 very specific questions) with no opportunities for remediation and maybe 3 insubstantial extra credit opportunities the whole year. I got a B+ in US History I and an A in US History II after working harder than I did in all of my other classes. For this reason, if you want to take the path of least resistance, I would recommend Honors, but keep in mind that it seems as if selective colleges really want to see APUSH or Dual Enrollment US History on transcripts. I am in AP US Gov and AP Macroeconomics online right now and I can say pretty surely that they are easier than US History, at least for me. A lot of the seniors at my school who were in APUSH/college US History last year dropped down to Honors Government and Economics even though AP is offered, but I really don’t know if this is looked upon favorably by admissions officers.

I’ve never taken Physics; I took regular Biology and AP Biology and Honors Chemistry and AP Chemistry, but if you’re good at math or scientifically inclined, I would take AP Physics 1. If you’re not, then I would recommend Honors or even standard Physics. The only reason why I have never taken physics is because I technically already fulfilled all of the college science requirements for my major (which is something that has absolutely nothing to do with STEM) via a 5 on the AP Biology exam.

What math track are you on? If you took Algebra 1H in 8th, then I would recommend that you would try to get up to AP Calculus senior year. If you took Algebra 1H in 9th, then I would definitely recommend AP Stats in 12th, but I’ve never taken it before (I’m taking College Stats 2nd semester of this year, which is basically the same course, only one semester long)

4

I am in 10th grade, so I still have a few more years before college strikes. I just want to manage my time in school accordingly. This year I am taking Algebra 2 Honors, Anatomy and Physiology Honors, AP World History, English 2 Honors, Chinese 2, and Social Media (required elective). My strongest subject is and always has been English, so it looks like taking the AP Lang and Lit courses would be a good decision. Science has never been my strongest subject. I have received good enough grades in the classes (B in Biology and A in Chemistry) but I never fully grasped the information (besides memorizing half of the periodic table). For that course, I think it would be best to stick to honors and below, just so I don’t suffocate in the class. Our school does have access to Dual Enrollment courses, however, they are required to be taken at the community college which unfortunately is an hour and a half away from my house, so transportation would be an issue. Thank you for your advice, I will absolutely take it into consideration while selecting my classes for the next year!